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The best Christmas gifts for coffee lovers in 2024
Amazon
Many of us love to start our morning with a cup of Joe, but we all know someone who takes their coffee really seriously. Whether it’s the coffee snob who only drinks a blend made from the finest beans or the person who always needs to have a fresh cup in their hand throughout the day, coffee enthusiasts are a special breed.
If you or someone you love can’t start the day without a warm cup of coffee, you’re definitely not alone. In a 2020 survey, over 50% of those surveyed said they “can’t have a positive morning” without coffee.
Here at CBS Essentials, we’re serious about finding you the best of the best in any category. From tool kits to the latest in cleaning trends, we’ve got you covered.
In our quest to give you the latest information on the best products, we’ve gone and done a deep dive into all things coffee — gifts for coffee lovers to be exact. Whether you’re looking to gift a killer espresso machine (how nice of you) or you want some help deciphering milk frothers, latte wands and cold brew, we’re here to help you find the best Christmas gift for the coffee lover in your life.
Give the gift you’ll also buy for yourself: Electric self-stirring mug
Amazon
They’ll be hard-pressed not to squeal “it’s so cute” when looking at this (yes) cute self-stirring mug. Affordably priced, this mug is designed for mixing milk in coffee or whipping up a matcha that’ll give their local barista a run for his or her money.
Why they’ll love an electric self-stirring mug:
- The mug is made from high borosilicate glass, which is capable of holding just boiled hot water or ice-cold water.
- The handle offers storage for stirring sticks so they don’t get lost.
For the coffee lover always on the go: BrüMate insulated coffee mug
BrüMate/Amazon
We tried BrüMate’s 32-ounce Toddy XL insulated coffee mug expecting another heavy mug that connotes an arm workout when carried throughout the day. To our surprise, Toddy doesn’t feel heavy, keeps our coffee and tea as warm as we like it, features a terrific no-spill top and is just the right size to avoid the unintended arm workout. Toddy has quickly become our go-to travel mug.
Why they’ll love the BrüMate insulated mug:
- This mug is generously sized and doesn’t feel as heavy as its competitors.
- The no-spill top really is leakproof.
- We like the color offerings, which have something for everyone.
Give the gift of coffee that’s always hot: Ember smart mug
Amazon
This smart coffee mug is built to keep hot beverages hot without back-and-forth trips to the microwave or necessitating a new pot of java. Its long-lasting battery ensures The recipient’s drink will stay at their preferred temperature between 120 and 145 degrees on a full charge.
The mug works with or independently of the Ember app, which can set the temperature, customize drink presets and more. The mug will even remember the last temperature it’s set to. It’ll go to sleep after two hours of inactivity or when the cup is empty, then wake up and start heating when it senses liquid or movement.
Why they’ll love the Ember smart mug:
- It keeps coffee warm for up to 80 minutes on a single charge or all day when used with the included coaster.
- It’s great for students or remote workers who like to keep their coffee warm through meetings or study sessions.
- It features a durable scratch-resistant coating.
For the traveling coffee connoisseur: AeroPress Go Travel coffee press
Amazon
The AeroPress Go Travel coffee press is the answer to bad (or overpriced!) hotel coffee and staying caffeinated while camping. This portable coffee press can brew delicious coffee in under a minute, or make cold brew in two minutes.
“The Aeropress Go Travel Coffee Press Kit is an absolute game-changer for coffee enthusiasts on the go! As someone who appreciates a good cup of Joe, I cannot recommend this portable coffee maker enough,” an Amazon reviewer says.
Why they’ll love the AeroPress Go Travel coffee press:
- It brews smooth, rich coffee without bitterness or grounds sneaking into the brew.
- It’s a portable option for coffee fans who love to travel or go camping.
- It can be used for hot coffee, cold brew or espresso.
For the cold brew enthusiast: Chamberlain Coffee cold brew starter kit
Chamberlain Coffee
Cold brew is a coffee drinker’s favorite, but many people don’t realize how easy it can be to make at home. This cold brew starter set comes with a mason jar system cup with a handle and lid, a reusable metal straw, and a pack of coffee bags that can be used to make cold brew. Simply steep the coffee bags (similar to tea bags) in water for 8 to 24 hours, then remove the bag and enjoy.
“{This is the] best cold brew coffee I have ever had! I do the single servings and brew them for 24 hours and they are so good and a fun surprise each morning,” a reviewer says.
Why they’ll love the Chamberlain Coffee cold brew starter kit:
- You can choose what coffee blend to include in the kit.
- It’s a beginner-friendly at-home cold brew coffee kit.
- The recipient will be able to enjoy their beloved cold brew right at home each morning.
For the coffee enthusiast that loves to try new blends: Atlas Coffee Club coffee world tour gift subscription
Atlas coffee club
Real coffee lovers like to explore new tastes and terroirs. Plus, coffee drinkers are likely going to buy new coffee each month anyway, so this subscription is a great clutter-free gift that any coffee enthusiast will enjoy.
Each month the Atlas Coffee Club subscription features a coffee from a different country. You can select whole beans, ground coffee, espresso, Keurig cups and more. There are also different roast options, so your gift recipient can get a light, medium or dark roast to suit their preferences.
Get a one-year coffee subscription for $189 (regularly $240).
Why they’ll love the Atlas Coffee Club coffee world tour subscription:
- Each coffee comes with a postcard from the coffee’s country of origin with tasting notes and the origin story of the coffee.
- It’s a fun way for the recipient to try all kinds of coffee while still getting their preferred bean style and strength.
- It’s a gift that keeps on giving for an entire year.
For the friend in need of an at-home coffee upgrade: Keurig milk frother
Amazon
Gifting this standalone frother is a great way to upgrade the recipient’s coffee experience without buying them a whole new coffee maker. This kitchen gadget is great at frothing milk for lattes and cappuccinos. It offers hot and cold frothing modes, so you can also make iced drinks with it.
It can be used alongside standard drip coffee makers, Keurig brews or any other coffee maker for the perfect latte experience. This frother is also a bit easier to use than handheld frothers. All you have to do is add your desired milk type and push a button.
This milk frother is currently $52, reduced from $80.
Why they’ll love the Keurig milk frother:
- It works with milk, cream and non-dairy milk alternatives.
- It provides nicely frothed milk with foam, so the recipient can have the coffee shop latte experience right from their own kitchen.
- Amazon reviewers call it quiet and easy to clean.
For the at-home barista: Torani Syrup coffeehouse variety set
Amazon
Give the gift of coffeehouse flavor with this Torani Syrup coffeehouse variety pack. It comes with four flavors: vanilla, salted caramel, classic hazelnut and French vanilla.
“I love to get coffee shop-level lattes at home and having these on my coffee bar makes it super simple to whip one up,” an Amazon reviewer says.
Why they’ll love the Torani Syrup coffeehouse variety pack
- It comes with four popular flavors to help the recipient make fun flavored lattes.
- Torani syrups are used in thousands of coffee shops.
- They have a two-year shelf life.
For the French Press newbie: Bodum Chambord French press coffee maker
Walmart
For the coffee fan who is looking to transition to a more involved coffee-making process, the French press is an easy, hands-on way to get more familiar with your morning brew.
“The coffee made with this press is smooth, not bitter,” a Walmart customer says. “No matter how strong I make it, it’s still smooth and delicious! Don’t waste your money on another electric coffee maker. This is a coffee lover’s dream.”
Why they’ll love the Bodum Chambord French press coffee maker:
- The French press brews rich coffee in only four minutes.
- It features a stainless steel plunger designed to prevent grounds from getting into the brewed coffee.
- French pressing coffee is more environmentally friendly than several of today’s popular brewing methods.
For the friend that loves the smell of fresh coffee: 96North coffee soy candle
Amazon
Know someone who loves the smell of freshly brewed coffee in the morning? Get them this candle to keep the smell of roasted coffee in the air all day.
“First of all, it came in the most beautiful presentation,” an Amazon reviewer says. “The scent is exactly as represented. It fills the air with a non-overpowering scent of coffee. It burns nice and slowly. I love it and would buy it again.”
Why they’ll love the 96North coffee soy candle:
- The candle has a delectable roasted coffee scent, making it the perfect gift for a true coffee lover.
- It’s made with all-natural soy wax.
- It comes wrapped up nicely in a giftable box.
For the latte addict: Nespresso Vertuo Next espresso maker
Amazon
Do you know someone who can’t go a day without heading to the coffee shop for their favorite latte? Consider gifting them a machine that will let them make it right from their own kitchen — and save themselves a ton of money.
The Nespresso Vertuo Next allows you to brew single-serve coffee or espresso at the touch of a button. The espresso maker can brew three cup sizes and offers an ultra-fast, 25-second heat-up time.
Even better: The company is always introducing new coffee flavors and seasonal favorites, like Pumpkin Spice Cake for the fall.
This espresso maker is currently $170, reduced from $209.
Why they’ll love the Nespresso Vertuo Next espresso maker:
- The espresso machine is only 5.5 inches wide, making it a compact option that works even in small spaces.
- It offers six cup size options.
- They can discover new flavors and seasonal favorites throughout the year (hello, pumpkin spice).
- Comes with a 37-ounce water reservoir so you can make several cups without having to add more water.
For the indecisive coffee drinker: Keurig K-Duo Plus coffee maker
Amazon
If you’re looking for a coffee maker to gift the person who likes to change things up and can’t decide between a traditional drip coffee maker and a single-serve model, we’ve found the perfect choice. The Keurig K-Duo Plus coffee maker allows you to use single-serve K-cups or brew a larger serving with ground coffee. The coffee maker features a 60-ounce water reservoir, so you don’t need to refill in between every brew. There is also a pause feature that allows you to stop the machine for 20 seconds while brewing a pot of coffee so that you can pour yourself a fresh cup right away. It’s rated 4.5 stars on Amazon.
“I am absolutely thrilled with the Keurig K-Duo Plus coffee maker! This versatile machine has revolutionized my morning coffee routine and has become an indispensable part of my kitchen,” one verified Amazon purchaser says.
This coffee maker is $199, reduced from $229.
Why they’ll love the Keurig K-Duo Plus coffee maker:
- You can use K-cups to make individual cups of coffee or brew larger pots with grounds.
- Auto-brew setting allows you to schedule a brew up to 24 hours in advance, so hot coffee is waiting for you when you wake up.
- The adjustable multi-position water reservoir can be positioned to the left, right or back of the brewer.
Gift our readers’ favorite espresso maker: Philips 3200 series fully automatic espresso machine
Philips via Amazon
If your gift recipient’s Keurig coffee maker is collecting dust because they’d rather enjoy a daily latte — without the Starbucks costs — gift them this fully automatic espresso machine from Philips.
The 4.3-star-rated device can make up to five black and milk-based coffee varieties at the touch of a button. Its classic milk frother system dispenses steam, allowing you to prepare silky smooth milk froth for your cappuccinos and more. This kitchen gadget even lets you adjust the strength and quantity of your beverage, and choose from three settings to suit your preferences. It was also a Black Friday best-seller among CBS Essentials readers last year.
“I’ve simply never had a better cup of coffee,” an Amazon reviewer says. “I go to sleep thinking about the delicious cup I’m going to have in the morning and wake up excited to have it. If you haven’t dipped into the world of fully automatic machines before, you’re in for a serious treat.”
Regularly price at $700, this machine is currently $599.
Why they’ll love this espresso machine:
- It can make a variety of coffee drinks with just the press of a button.
- You can adjust the intensity of your beverages to suit your taste.
- It features a milk frother.
60 Minutes
For more than five decades, 60 Minutes has covered it all—from headline news to quiet human stories—fit neatly in one hour. Now in the digital age, we have more time and use novel approaches to report the news.
Syria was home to one of the first civilizations on earth; today, the country is picking up the pieces from the ruins of humanity’s oldest sin. Half a century of dictatorship between Bashar al-Assad and his father, Hafez. Half a million lives lost in a civil war under the younger Assad’s hand.
Now that he’s gone, Syria is looking toward its future. But before the country can plan what’s to come, its people want the world to be reminded of what has taken place.
In May, Norah O’Donnell sat down with Pope Francis for a historic interview. The head of the Catholic Church for more than a decade, Francis had previously never spoken at length with an English-language American broadcast network, and he spoke to 60 Minutes in his native Spanish.
In a wide-ranging conversation lasting more than an hour, O’Donnell spoke with the pontiff about numerous topics, including the war in Gaza. There is one Catholic church in the Gaza Strip, the Holy Family Church, and the pontiff told O’Donnell he calls there every evening at 7 p.m. and speaks with the priest, Father Youssef Asaad.
Because his more progressive approach has created a division with traditionalists, O’Donnell asked Francis how he saw his legacy.
“Church is the legacy, the Church not only through the pope, but through you, through every Christian, through everyone…” he answered. “We all leave a legacy, and institutions leave a legacy. It’s a beautiful progression. I get on the bandwagon of the Church’s legacy for everybody.”
In February, 60 Minutes correspondent Sharyn Alfonsi reported on the challenges humanitarian aid workers are facing inside Gaza as they try to deliver food, medicine and health care to Palestinians caught in the crossfire between Israel and Hamas.
“I don’t think I’ve been this close to the sound of missile strikes…with a hospital shaking while I’m trying to operate,” Dr. Nareen Ahmed, American doctor and medical director of MedGlobal, told 60 Minutes.
Alfonsi and producer Ashley Velie have been reporting on Gaza since the first Israel-Hamas war in 2006. One stark difference this time is the lack of access: Israel has barred journalists from entering Gaza independently. While they were able to speak with Hamas leadership in 2006, for this story, Alfonsi and Velie had to rely on aid workers who documented their harsh reality.
“This is unusual,” Alfonsi said. “There is a longstanding precedent of allowing journalists into the war zones.”
In his bid for a second term in the White House, President-elect Donald Trump made immigration a defining issue in the 2024 presidential race.
“The Republican platform promises to launch the largest deportation operation in the history of our country,” he said at the Republican National Convention this past July, as his crowd of supporters held signs bearing the phrase “mass deportation now!”
Trump has pledged to expel a large number of migrants since at least 2015, when he was first running for commander in chief. In the last nine years, one thing has frequently come up when Trump mentions removing en masse the migrants who have crossed the border illegally: the name of another former president.
“You look back in the 1950s, you look back at the Eisenhower administration, take a look at what they did, and it worked,” Trump told 60 Minutes correspondent Scott Pelley in 2015.
What the U.S. government did under Dwight D. Eisenhower was a massive military-style sweep. U.S. Border Patrol agents conducted raids to round up Mexican laborers from farms and ranches, then transported them deported deep into Mexico. Historians say the program tore families apart, violated civil rights — and at times, even turned deadly.
Moreover, those who have studied the Eisenhower administration’s approach say this short-term show-of-force did not stop the problem.
For the season premiere of 60 Minutes, correspondent Cecilia Vega and a producing team intended to report on tensions between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea. They did not expect to end up in the middle of an international incident themselves, seeing China’s intimidation tactics first-hand.
The plan was for the 60 Minutes team to accompany the Philippine Coast Guard on a routine mission to resupply its ships and stations aboard the Cape Engaño. While aboard the ship, the team was woken up at 4 a.m. by a loud bang, followed by an alarm. A Chinese ship had rammed the Cape Engaño, the Philippine crew informed them, telling them to put on life jackets and stay put inside their cabins.
Once back on deck, the 60 Minutes crew saw the three-and-a-half-foot hole torn into the Cape Engaño’s hull. As daylight dawned, they also saw how many Chinese ships surrounded the Philippine ship, bows pointed at it. During the standoff, the crew aboard the Cape Engaño was unable to access internet or cell service, and the Filipinos said it was likely because the Chinese were jamming their communications.
“It was scary. I mean, there’s no other way to describe it,” 60 Minutes producer Andy Court said. “And I don’t think anything you put on television will accurately convey what it’s like.”
This fall, 60 Minutes correspondent Jon Wertheim reported on the recent success of the WNBA, the top league of American women’s basketball. Legions of new WNBA fans are filling up arenas and tuning into games. Attendance is up 48% across the league and TV ratings have surged 153% from last season.
One thing has driven this boost in viewership: rookie WNBA player Caitlin Clark. Millions watched Clark’s performance in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament earlier this year and were amazed by what has now become her signature shot: a three-pointer from just inside mid-court, near the home team logo, also known as the “logo 3.”
Now a player on the Indiana Fever, Clark took 60 Minutes to a Fever practice court and showed Wertheim all the different elements that come together for this crowd-dazzling shot.
In New York City, there has been a quarter-century-long effort to reclaim the dead.
On September 11th, 2001, the bodies of nearly 2,800 people were buried at ground zero, reduced to anonymous fragments in a grave made of concrete and steel. Most people know of the visible bravery in lower Manhattan that day, the nobility of the first responders running up the stairs while everyone else was coming down. Less well known was another group of first responders, whose tireless effort to identify the victims has been quietly ongoing since.
Today, new technology is helping the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner keep a promise to do whatever it takes, as long as it takes, to put names to the remains.
Ukraine has a landmine crisis.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion began two years ago, Ukraine has become one of the most mined countries in the world. These hidden weapons are crippling the country’s agricultural economy and maiming — even killing — its civilians. Since 2022, landmines and explosive remnants of war have contributed to more than 1,000 civilian casualties in Ukraine. The HALO Trust, a nonprofit organization focused on ridding warzones of landmines, estimates the number of mines in Ukraine at the moment to be in the millions.
“We must remember that the conflict is still ongoing and is likely to for the foreseeable future,” said Pete Smith, the Ukraine program manager for the HALO Trust. “So, many of these minefields are not actually in reach of us at this moment in time. But when Ukraine is able to recover its territories, clearly a concerted effort is going to be needed over generations.”
U.S. officials in Vietnam were injured in a Havana Syndrome style attack ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris’s 2021 trip to Hanoi. Now, new evidence suggests Russia may have been involved — and that it may have been the Vietnamese themselves who were given technology that could have caused the injuries.
At the time, the U.S. embassy in Hanoi announced that a possible “anomalous health incident,” the federal government’s term for so-called Havana Syndrome attacks, was slowing Harris’s arrival in Vietnam. 60 Minutes has learned that 11 people reported being struck in separate incidents before Harris entered the country: two people who were officials at the American embassy in Hanoi, and nine people who were part of a Defense Department advance team preparing for Harris’s visit.
“Once you admit that this happened, it is a Pandora[‘s] box,” said Christo Grozev, an investigative journalist who currently leads investigative work for The Insider. “It requires you to confront the fact that you have your arch enemy acting against your own people, your own intelligence workers, on your territory, and this is nothing other than a declaration of war.”
In May, Anderson Cooper reported on a photo album received by the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum that turned out to be the personal scrapbook of a high-ranking SS officer, Karl Höcker. Höcker worked at the notorious Auschwitz concentration camp.
A play that has been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize, “Here There Are Blueberries,” is now telling the story of the historians and archivists who uncovered the identities of the people in the haunting photographs. The play’s title comes from a series of photos in the album— young secretaries who worked under Karl Höcker are seen eating blueberries.
They were called ‘Helferinnen,’ or ‘helpers,’ and they weren’t just young women who got drafted and sent there. These were young women who, historians say, had grown up with Nazi ideology and knew full well what was transpiring at Auschwitz.
“Part of the communication that they had to do was communicating the arrivals of trains, how many people had been selected for work, and how many people had been selected to be gassed,” said Rebecca Erbelding, a historian at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum who in 2007 had received the photo album in the mail. “And so they were sending those messages back to Berlin. So they absolutely [knew].”
In the last year, hackers from around the world have teamed up to attack tech companies, hotels, casinos, and hospitals in the United States, taking their data hostage by encrypting it and demanding ransom for the keys to unlock it.
Jon DiMaggio, a former analyst who worked for the National Security Agency, now investigates ransomware as chief security strategist for the cybersecurity firm Analyst1.
DiMaggio said he has spent years developing relationships with ransomware hackers on the dark web and worked his way up to the leadership of the ransomware gang LockBit.
“I realized these guys are touchable…I can pretend to be someone else and go out and actually talk to them and extract information,” he told 60 Minutes.
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